​Jackson State football is faced with an important SWAC road contest in Week 8.The No. 22 Tigers (6-1, 3-1 SWAC) are visiting Bethune-Cookman (4-3, 2-1) in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Oct. 24 (noon CT, SWAC). A win over BCU would give the Tigers their first SWAC road win this season and keep them in first place in the SWAC East Division standings heading into an off week.JSU is coming off a 27-17 win over Florida A&M in its homecoming game. The Tigers saw the return of running back Nate Blount IV, who missed a game with a knee injury, and quarterback Jared Lockhart, who sat out the second half against Grambling State after suffering a back injury. BCU picked up a road win over divisional opponent Mississippi Valley State in its last game.JSU has won its last four contests vs. BCU and is 8-3 against the Wildcats all-time. The last time the Tigers lost to the Wildcats was in 2019.Jackson State vs Bethune-Cookman predictionCoach T.C. Taylor said his team’s focuses this week are stopping Bethune-Cookman’s run game and withstanding the Wildcats’ aggressive defensive pressure.BCU has the No. 1 rushing offense in the SWAC and ranks No. 5 in the FCS, averaging 228.4 yards per game with a SWAC-high 19 rushing touchdowns. The matchup will challenge JSU’s run defense, which allows the least rushing yardage in the SWAC.Running back Rashon Brown has taken the majority of carries for 650 yards and nine touchdowns.”The thing about Bethune, they’re committed to it. They’re going to give (Brown) the football and play solid defense,” Taylor said Oct. 19. “… That young man, he runs hard. He protects the football, and he’s putting up huge numbers. But a lot of that is a testament to the o-line play.”BCU’s pass defense is stingy, giving up 157.1 yards per game through the air, and the Wildcats’ pass rush that’s recorded 19 sacks adds another layer of difficulty.However, similar to BCU, JSU’s offense relies heavily on its run game that ranks eighth in the FCS. The Tigers are led by Blount’s 562 yards and Li’Darious Pryor’s 350. Both have five rushing touchdowns.Even with JSU leaning on its running backs to produce yardage, Taylor acknowledged the importance of his offensive line being alert for passing plays. JSU has only allowed eight sacks, the second-best mark in the conference.”They’ve got to understand the looks that the defense is giving us and just go out there and execute it,” Taylor said of his offense. “Once you bring a lot of pressure, you leave a lot of guys on the back end in one-on-one situations, and we kind of like that for our receivers and other things. But that’s what coach (Raymond Woodie Jr.) has hung his hat on this year. They’re going to blitz, blitz, blitz, so we’ve got to be ready for it.”Jackson State vs Bethune-Cookman scouting reportWhy Jackson State has an advantage: Both teams make it their goal to establish the run, but JSU’s run defense has been significantly better than BCU’s. The Wildcats rank 10th in the SWAC, al